“I’m not going to be an aggressive player,” said Chiarelli. “With where we are on the cap, we’ll sit back, wait, and see what’s out there. We’ll address the couple areas where we believed we can be improved upon. We’ll see how the days unfold.”

“I think we’ll get something done,” Tallon said. “We offered him a fair contract, so I’m hopeful.”
At one point it was believed there was no chance the Hawks would re-sign Handzus, who was thought to be seeking a four-year contract in the neighborhood of $16 million. It’s not known exactly what the Hawks have offered, but it might be as high as $3.5 million to $3.8 million a year for at least three years.

Anxiety is intensifying as the deadline approaches because incoming contract proposals could blow away anything the Sabres can put together. Also on the brink of unrestricted free agency are forwards Adam Mair, Michael Ryan and Dainius Zubrus, defenseman Teppo Numminen and goalie Ty Conklin.
Sources close to the team say Mair is close signing a multiyear extension. The Presidents’ Trophy winners are making a push to sign him before Sunday.
The signing of Mair, however, would do little to quell the angst surrounding the futures of Briere and Drury, players who accounted for more than 20 percent of the team’s winning goals in the regular season and 35 percent in the playoffs.

The Rangers are focused on re-signing unrestricted free agent-to-be Michael Nylander, who arguably has been the biggest post-lockout bargain in the entire league as he’s flourished alongside Jaromir Jagr while making just over $2 million per year.
He’s likely to command in the neighborhood of $4 to 5 million per year over three or four years.
The Rangers also are very much in the mix for either Buffalo’s Chris Drury or the Devils’ Scott Gomez, both of whom become unrestricted free agents Sunday as well and plan to test the open market. Mark Witkin, Drury’s agent, said earlier in the week that it was too early to comment on his client’s situation.

I asked Lombardi about the fact that the Kings have been attached to many of the top free agents out there and asked him if it was safe to say that they would be aggressive when the signing period begins.
``When you use the word aggressive, I think it’s safe to say that we’ll be persuing some of those (high-profile) names,’’ Lombardi said. ```That being said, it’s all about the right player for the right price when you get to free agency. Sometimes you get into talks and you throw a big (salary) figure out there and you end up saying, `What did I do?’ and you have buyer’s remorse. You have to take the emotion out of him. On the other hand, I’m certainly not going to sit here doing nothing.’‘

General manager Ken Holland continues to negotiate with agents for goalie Dominik Hasek; defensemen Mathieu Schneider and Danny Markov; and forward Todd Bertuzzi.
“I expect we’ll keep talking to all of them up until the last day,” Holland said this week.
A deal with Hasek could be struck today, probably a one-year contract worth from $2 million to $2.5 million.

Here’s 15 to look at, how much they could get and where they could go.
1. Centre Daniel Briere, 28, Buffalo Sabres
Hard to believe Phoenix once traded this kid to Buffalo for Chris Gratton because they wanted to get bigger. He’s the flashiest of all of the free agents, capable of 50 goals and 100 points. The Flyers will make the strongest pitch for him because Don Luce, the former Sabres’ scouting guru, now works for Philadelphia, and Briere’s good friend, Martin Biron, is the Flyers goalie. How much will it cost? Eight million dollars.

It’s more likely Ottawa will focus on the second tier of free agents.
That could include forwards like Bill Guerin, Robert Lang or Dainius Zubrus..
Murray, who replaced John Muckler on June 18, is in a difficult spot.
The Senators have spent about $42 million on 16 players for next season and that’s before a raise for goalie Ray Emery has been factored into the equation.
The Senators would like to keep centre Mike Comrie, who made $3 million last season, but Murray has indicated he just doesn’t have the money. Expect to see the Maple Leafs and Capitals make a pitch for Comrie.

So, Sunday’s July the first; and July the first starts the Summer of Smyth. And the Summer of Smyth better culminate with that frigging hippie eating cheddar in Hockeytown. What seemed unlikely to the pessimistic among you now has a bit more reality attached to it. The 50.3 Cap has given the Wunderkind some breathing room. But a few million dollars doesn’t mean a stress-free existence for our boy Kenny. Nope, he’s got some decisions to make; and one of them just may be the toughest of his tenure as genius behind the dynasty.

Could it come down to a choice between Mathieu Schneider and Ryan Smyth? If so, who do you shell out the bucks to? Ponder that while I dig a bit.

About Kukla’s Korner

Kukla’s Korner is updated around the clock with the work of our own talented bloggers, plus links to the best hockey writing around the internet. We strive to bring you all the breaking hockey news as it happens.

The home page allows you to see the latest postings from every blog on the site. Subscribe here. For general inquiries and more, please contact us anytime.